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Reference

NFL analytics glossary

Every metric this API returns, with the formula, what it is for, and the specific way people get it wrong. Written from how these are actually computed here, not paraphrased.

EPA
expected points added · EPA per play

How much a single play changed the number of points its team could expect to score next — the closest thing football has to a universal currency.

Success rate
SR · successful play rate

The share of plays that gained enough to keep the drive on schedule. EPA's blunt, stable cousin.

Win probability
WP · win percentage

The chance a team wins from the state the game is in right now.

CPOE
completion percentage over expected

How often a passer completes throws compared with what the throw itself justified.

Air yards
intended air yards · aDOT · average depth of target

How far downfield the ball travelled before it was caught or fell — opportunity, measured before the catch.

Snap share
snap count · snap percentage · playing time

The share of his team's offensive or defensive snaps a player was on the field for. The first thing to check before anything else.

Yards after catch
YAC

Yards a receiver gains once the ball is in his hands, as opposed to the yards the throw travelled.

Time to throw
TT · time to release

Seconds from the snap until the ball leaves the quarterback's hand, measured by tracking rather than charted by hand.

Closing line
closing spread · close · final line

The last price a market offered before kickoff, and the most accurate public forecast of a game that exists.

Point differential
point diff · net points

Points scored minus points allowed. A better guide to a team's next game than its record is.

Passer rating
NFL passer rating · QB rating

The league's own quarterback formula, built from four rate stats and capped at 158.3.

Win probability added
WPA

How much a single play moved a team's chance of winning that specific game — the change in win probability, play by play.